Game Programming Patterns

I really liked this book. I started learning programming patterns from the book by Gang of four, but I found it to be very hard to read and understand. This book does it way better - the content is not only understandable, but it's well-written, straight to the point and sometimes even funny. Small disclaimer - I am a backend developer, not a game developer (at least professionally). Still, it was still worth reading and I was satisfied with the choice of patterns.

Very nice book, goes into just enough detail to give you the concepts but leaves you to think about improvements, extensions or potential uses outside the ones listed. The patterns are classic programming patterns but given a slight twist of game dev. The author does a good job of explaining the patterns and how/where/why they might be used as well as some potential pitfalls. If you want extensive detail on game engines or how to make your first game this isn't the book, but it doesn't claim to be! The patterns within would be a great help to any budding C/C++/Java game developer (as well as many other mainly OOP based languages I'm sure). Don't expect to be able to write the next AAA title after reading this but you can be sure that your understanding of how games (and their code more specifically) are generally organised. Some of the patterns I felt could have been elaborated on a bit more but overall this book is a great read for anyone looking to get into game development.

Although it deals with patterns in relation to games, in many ways this is a spiritual successor to the Gang of Four's "Design Patterns" and has given me a lot of of ideas for ways to improve my design and architecture outside of games too. Very well-paced and despite the fact that I haven't touched C++ for a long time, all of the examples were clear and easy to follow. It's very easy to read and the chapters can be read sequentially or individually. One thing I particularly liked was the way the author closes off each pattern with a look at which other patterns in the book it's similar to and why you would choose it over them.

Okay book, some nice things in here and I like having the physical copy however you can find this online for free from Robert Nystrom himeslf. Support the author where possible!

My son loved it

This is not a game programming book - it won’t walk you through writing a game... BUT it cleverly goes through the programming techniques with the thought processes that a game programmer would have, and using game situations as examples. As a result, I understood a lot more about why and how game engines work (previously they were a bit of a black box for me) *and* saw how some of these high performance techniques applied in non-game situations. Special praise for the even handedness of the approach. For every technique the author gives multiple variations, and full lists of pros and cons. Recommended for all programmers interested in performance.

What an amazing read! A lecturer had recommended this book to me nearly 2 years ago and I can't stress enough that I wished I read this sooner! The author made sure that this wasn't just some "dry" book stuffed with design patterns. It's incredibly witty at times and is super informative!

One of the best books on the subject that I have read. The author's writing is clear and easy to follow, making complex concepts understandable even for not so experienced programmers, like me. The awareness that the author has with the upsides and downsides of each design choice is remarkable, as well as his attention to details. This is a must have book.

I'm an almost self-taught programmer, and one of the things I've never quite finish to understand were programming patterns. This book is so masterfully written that it doesn't just make them easy to comprehend and implement, it is also really enjoyable to read. It has many great examples, some bits of history and even some humor. I've used the things I learned with it, not only for games, but also for more generalist projects. Definitely a must.

An excellent read - very well structured and written - reads as a casual conversation with the author. While the content is quite in-depth, a consistent use of examples (both in concept and in code) makes it easy to keep reading page after page. This book is not just for game developers either - the patterns covered have a board application outside of game dev.

Bien qu"il soit associé aux jeu vidéo, ce bouquin est en fait l'un des meilleurs livres sur les design patterns que j'ai pu lire. L'auteur a un sens pédagogique certain : les explications sont claires, les exemples bien choisis et longuement interprétés. Les limites de chaque approche sont explicitées et mises en relation avec d'autres design patterns. Cerise sur le gâteau : le style est simple, précis, efficace et bourré d'humour. De nombreuses anecdotes personnelles donnent de la couleur au texte. Je recommande chaudement ce livre accessible et agréable mais qui n'en est pas moins rigoureux et efficace. Une réussite !

Ein sehr gutes Buch um Architektur-Patterns hinter Spielen (und anderer Software) zu verstehen. Wer schon ein wenig anfängliche Erfahrung in Frameworks wie Unity oder Unrealengine gesammelt hat und jetzt lernen möchte, wie man seinen Code besser strukturiert, dem kann ich das Buch wärmstens empfehlen. Es werden auch Grundlagen erklärt, die in vielen Spieleengines verwendet werden, dadurch ist das Buch auch allein für ein besseres Verständnis interessant. Aber Achtung! Wer lernen möchte, selber eine Engine von Grund auf zu schreiben, der braucht eher andere Literatur. Ebenfalls muss man schon ein wenig allgemeine Programmiererfahrung mitbringen, um die Konzepte verstehen und einordnen zu können. Durch die sehr unterhaltsame Schreibweise des Autors macht es Spaß, dieses fachlich ausgelegte Buch zu studieren und es hat einen festen Platz in meinem Bücherschrank gefunden.

I enjoyed reading this book and learning more about design patterns in game development. The examples and visual diagrams are simple and easy to understand. Excellent! Not just a book of various chapters, but a contiguous array of valuable information.